Dowel

[spasm]

:deer

Hi guys, wondering if anyone can help with some suggestions on dowels, I make peg looms for local crafts etc. at the moment I’m using Richard Burbridge pine dowels I go through stacks of them I cut them down to about 130mm pegs get 17 per length, the dowels are 9mm but rarely come this size never smaller always bigger the last 5 pack of 18 dowels I’ve had are about 9.6mm I work to a tolerance of about .4mm.
My question is does anyone know of something I can use to make the dowels the right size sandpaper takes too long a dowel maker piece of metal with a 9mm hole and push the dowel though I think would leave the wood to rough.

I have a lathe is there a device that you can get to make dowels on a lathe?

Spasm

 

[Steve Maskery]

Get a dowel plate. It's a hardened plate with a series of holes in it. Just hammer the dowels through and they come out round and perfectly sized. I think LN do one.
S

 

[The_Stig]

Here you go fella:
http://www.axminster.co.uk/lie-nielsen-lie-nielsen-dowel-plates-prod20396/?src=froogle

 

[Beardo16]

Yes i can reccommend the lie nielsen version and use it on a regular basis.

Quality made and will last forever. Or just get some cheap steal and drill holes through.

 

[Jacob]

Dowel plate dowels are a bit rough. OK for pegging joints, not for nicely finished round rods.
The machine way is a half round cutter on a spindle. Or a router I imagine.
Or buy them ready made from somebody else. They are a stock item for some suppliers but usually hardwood; ramin, beech, most popular. Winther Browne used to have them. Ask around, model shops etc. or suppliers of mouldings.

PS just googled this - http://www.woodworkscraftsupplies.co.uk ... Path=117_1
There are others.

 

[The_Stig]

Get some cheap steal and drill holes through.

If only I had £1 for everytime I'd suggested that! I'd have at least £20 now

 

[Steve Maskery]

The only problem with the LN plate is that is doesn't have the 9mm hole that the OP wants.

You're going to have to drill your own, spasm. Or make them on a router jig, with a cove cutter underneath and a block of wood over the top.

Hmm methinks I can feel a new YouTube vid coming on.
S

 

[Beardo16]

Get some cheap steal and drill holes through.

If only I had £1 for everytime I'd suggested that! I'd have at least £20 now

Oh too true. The same has to be said with cabinet scrapers i suppose

I have done it but much prefer the lie nielsen plate.

 

[Scrums]

Any reason to use Pine - I'd have thought Hardwood was better.....?

If they don't have to be 9mm, but could be 3/8 (9.5) you could try here http://plugitdowel.co.uk/dowel.cfm they're good to deal with, fast and last time I looked had some 'bent' stock, which at the lengths you require would be straight, going out cheaply.

Chris.

 

[squib]

I think you need one of these, i use a 3/8" and an 1/2" one all the time and you can fine tune them by adjusting the blade ,it would also mean you can make your own rather than buying in.

http://www.axminster.co.uk/veritas-veri ... rc=froogle

 

[Jacob]

Just occurred to me - their 9.6mm is pretty close to 9.525mm which is 3/8". So their dowels are well within your 0.4mm tolerance, if you accept that they are 3/8" and not 9mm.

 

[joiner_sim]

A more expensive option would be to go ahead and buy a copy lathe:
http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-axminster-cl1500-copy-lathe-prod797101/?src=froogle
I haven't used this model, but have used a copy lathe before and they are great for repeat productions!

 

[spasm]

:ho2

Hi Guys,

Thanks for all the replies, like I said yesterday I go through an lot of dowel I use 40 meters yesterday morning alone probably 300 meters in the last month 9mm is the optimum width for the dowel 9.4 will work but that’s the limit.

I have use birch dowel, but fount this to be too weak as I have to drill a 4mm hole about 35mm up the peg and when weaving I found the pegs would snap at this point so pine is the best I’ve found so far.

Manually shaping the pegs would take to long for the amount I use I guess I’ll have to get back to the dowel manufacturer to see if they have changed the dowel width from 9mm to 9.5+mm.

Thanks for all the advice.

Rob

 

[AndyT]

This recent thread in the hand tools section covered most of the bases on making dowels by hand:
https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/dowel-plates-are-pricey-t45351.html

and this one covered a slightly more mechanised way:
https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/veritas-dowel-maker-t45049.html

 

[lanemaux]

May be a bit of overkill , but a dowel tool does exist that literally "cranks " them out. The device clamps to a benchtop and square stock is fed through square retaining holes (several sizes) through to a revolving cutter operated by a crank (no , not me). I have seen a few on E-bay , cannot recall prices , sorry. To see one in action , go to woodwrights shop website and watch the video on making wooden toys online.

 

[AndyT]

Indeed there is - the Stanley no. 77 -

(picture from Hans Brunner's site at
http://www.hansbrunnertools.gil.com.au/Stanley by numbers/Stanley 77.htm)

 

[The_Stig]

The same has to be said with cabinet scrapers i suppose.

This is probably going to sound really silly but please enlighten me as in the past always brought cabinet scrapers. I seem to have a problem with stopping them rusting though, I keep them in the workshop but still they get pitted with rust. I'm tempted to wrap them in an oil coated cloth but then this would surely stain the wood when I used them.

 

[The_Stig]

Indeed there is - the Stanley no. 77 -

(picture from Hans Brunner's site at
http://www.hansbrunnertools.gil.com.au/ ... y%2077.htm)

That is some awesome piece of kit, it sure looks like its built to last but I'm unsure if I'd like to be turning the handle for a long period of time... such is the life of an apprentice! lol

 

[lanemaux]

That's what I was meaning. Brilliant little do-dad which St. Roy referred to as his toy for making toys or some such. Can see myself sitting at the bench making dowels for every purpose and then looking for more purposes.

 

[tool613]

you can make one with a router.
http://www.highlandwoodworking.com/dowelmakingjig.aspx

jack